News: 2027 NFL Draft: Where were Saints scouting during their bye week?

2027 NFL Draft: Where were Saints scouting during their bye week?

By John Sigler | Saints Wire | November 2, 2026

The New Orleans Saints entered their Week 8 bye at 2-5, a record that has already sent fans and analysts alike thumbing through early 2027 mock drafts. But while the coaching staff spent the week in self-scout mode, the college scouting department was far from idle. With no game to prepare for, the Saints’ area scouts fanned out across the country, logging credentials at multiple SEC and ACC matchups featuring prospects projected to go in the top half of next spring’s draft. Here is a rundown of where the Saints were spotted and which players helped themselves in front of New Orleans’ evaluators.

Missouri at Arkansas

The Saints were one of five NFL teams credentialed for Missouri’s trip to Arkansas, per the Columbia Missourian, joined by the Rams, 49ers, Buccaneers, and Jaguars . The headline attraction was Missouri running back Ahmad Hardy, who made his return after suffering a gunshot wound at a concert in the offseason. Hardy was eased back in with just two carries for five yards, but his teammate Jamal Roberts carried the load with 23 rushes for 138 yards and a score, adding three receptions for 20 yards and another touchdown . For a Saints team that has cycled through running backs all season and ranks among the league’s least productive rushing attacks, Roberts’ workload and production are worth monitoring. The marquee individual matchup pitted Arkansas edge rusher Quincy Rhodes against Missouri left tackle Cayden Green, two top-50 prospects. Green largely shut Rhodes down, a result that will resonate in a draft class where edge rusher is considered one of the deepest positions . The Saints’ defensive line has been a persistent weakness; mock drafts have consistently linked New Orleans to pass rushers like Texas’ Colin Simmons and South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart .

Virginia at Wake Forest

The Daily Progress spotted the Saints among three teams on the UVA-Wake Forest press box seating chart, alongside the 49ers and Chargers . Wake Forest freshman running back Jamar Searcy averaged 9.8 yards per carry in a dominant win, while junior Ty Clark III found the end zone three times on the ground. Senior wideout Carlos Hernandez was uncoverable with eight catches for 136 yards and a score. Virginia’s Da’Shawn Martin, another senior, kept the Cavaliers competitive with nine receptions for 119 yards and their only touchdown. The Saints’ receiver room has been a topic of scrutiny all season. Chris Olave remains the only consistent threat, and the team’s lack of depth behind him has been exposed. While Hernandez and Martin are viewed as Day 3 prospects at this stage, the Saints’ presence at a game featuring two productive senior receivers suggests the front office is casting a wide net for depth.

Mississippi State at Texas

Six teams were in attendance in Austin, including the Saints, per 247 Sports, alongside the Chargers, Commanders, Cardinals, Lions, and Eagles . Mississippi State cornerback Kelley Jones, a first-round prospect, allowed just two catches and one first-down conversion in a blowout loss. Texas edge defender Colin Simmons missed the game with an ankle injury, but Longhorns wideout Emmett Mosley V took advantage of the attention on Jones, catching four passes for 98 yards and a touchdown, including a 36-yarder against Jones. Simmons is arguably the most commonly mocked player to the Saints in early 2027 projections. The Athletic’s early mock had New Orleans selecting Texas offensive tackle Trevor Goosby, while Yahoo and FanSided linked the Saints to Simmons . Simmons’ ankle injury is not expected to affect his draft stock, but the Saints’ scouts will want a clean medical report before committing a top-five pick to a pass rusher.

Texas State at Boise State

It is unclear whether the Saints had scouts in the building for this one, but head coach Kellen Moore was on hand for the unveiling of a statue in his likeness as the winningest quarterback in college football history . Moore also got a look at Boise State running back Dylan Riley, who fought for 86 rushing yards and a clutch touchdown in a one-point Broncos win. Moore’s presence at his alma mater is a nice human-interest footnote, but the Saints’ head coach has far more pressing concerns. His team’s rushing offense managed just 18 yards on 17 carries in a loss to Pittsburgh before the bye, the franchise’s fewest rushing yards in 27 years . Moore has acknowledged that fixing the run game is a priority during the bye-week self-scout, and while Boise State’s Riley is not a top-tier prospect, the Saints’ willingness to evaluate mid-round running backs reflects how thin the position group has become. The Bigger Picture

The Saints’ bye-week scouting itinerary fits a pattern established over the first two months of the season. New Orleans has been credentialed at games featuring some of the nation’s most prominent draft prospects, from South Carolina edge rusher Dylan Stewart to Oregon defensive tackle A’Mauri Washington to Kentucky left tackle Lance Heard . The common thread is a focus on the trenches and the secondary, two areas where the roster lacks young, controllable talent. Mock drafts are a imperfect guide, but the consensus through October has the Saints targeting either a pass rusher or an offensive tackle in Round 1. The Athletic’s projection of Goosby at No. 9 overall would give New Orleans a 6-foot-7, 325-pound bookend to pair with quarterback Tyler Shough, while the Simmons and Stewart projections address a defensive front that has generated inconsistent pressure opposite Chase Young. What the bye week confirmed is that the Saints are not waiting until the offseason to begin building their 2027 board. With a 2-5 record and a roster in transition, the college scouting department’s work over the bye may prove more consequential to the franchise’s long-term trajectory than anything that happened on the field in Week 8.